Career Planning & Employment Projections

Proper career planning requires taking a lot more into consideration today than it did even just a few years ago. It used to be a lot more simple to choose a career… you either chose something that you loved to do or something that paid very well. But now, it is a lot more complicated than that. Why? Times are changing. Technology constantly introduces new benefits, but also brings on problems as well. Robotics, software, algorithms and so on are increasingly taking over jobs.

Nowadays, you really have to think about the future. The last thing you want is to dive into a career that is on path to a dead end, either because some new technology can easily take it over or the trade is simply dying out. If you don’t look ahead to make an educated decision, you could be in for a short ride with a rough ending. So if you want to be smart about your path selection, be sure you include data such as trends and projections into your decisions.

One place you can look at is the Employment Projections data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The large table on that page provides a wealth of information. You can see 2014-2024 projections which show job counts, changes, average annual wages, required education, experience and training for each job title. That is awesome data and you should definitely check it out.

This is a partial capture of the top of the table:

If you take a look at the table, you should be able to determine if your current or potential career path is on an upward or downward trend, by looking at declines or increases in percentage changes, counts, and wages. Think about what your job looks like in the future. Look at other options you’ve considered but didn’t choose. Do you see anything that might be a better choice?

In any case, we hope your path leads to a long life of success!

Please let us know what you think.